What is a traveller’s tryst? It’s something I recently invented, and I’m really excited about it!

I was thinking about why we love to travel, and how it’s not just for the opportunity to see amazing places and encounter new people. We do it for the way it feels – that sense of heightened awareness, almost elation, which comes from stepping away from well-worn tracks and comfort zones, and really paying attention to your surroundings.

Wouldn’t it be great to feel like that more often, and not have to wait for the next big overseas trip to tap into those emotions?

The ‘Artist Date’

You may have heard of Julia Cameron’s concept of ‘the artist date’. Cameron is a writer, musician and film-maker, whose book The Artist’s Way helps people to unlock their inner creativity. Her vision is all about ‘practicing the art of creative living’, whatever form that might take.

A central part of Julia Cameron’s method is the artist date. She describes the artist date as an opportunity to spend some quality time with your creative self. You’re supposed to commit to carving out a couple of hours every week to go out and do something fun, stimulating and inspiring by and for yourself. The idea is that doing this regularly will stimulate your right brain (the intuitive side), nurture your inner child and replenish your creative spirit.

So I’m thinking, why not use a similar technique to nourish the part of ourselves that comes alive when we travel? We could call it, with a big nod to Julia Cameron’s ‘artist date’, the traveller’s tryst. (I like alliteration.)

Feeding the inner traveller

The traveller’s tryst, as I see it, is a date with our inner traveller – that part of us that loves to step off the grid, make an unscheduled stop, turn left where we would normally turn right, wander down laneways, peer through windows, or climb towers and hills to discover what can be seen from the top. It’s the part that’s given free rein when we’re in travelling mode, but too often is put back in the cupboard once we get home, until the next time the suitcases come out.

We can’t be travelling all the time. For most of us, big trips come along only once in a while, and even little ones have to be fitted in between the main business of earning a living or caring for a family. But we can be travellers all the time, or much of it, because travel is more than anything a state of mind. Can you be a traveller in your home town? Most definitely. In your own street? Let’s find out. This is an experiment in keeping your inner traveller well-fed and happy, no matter where you are.

So what are the rules?

Well, there aren’t any really, but here are a few parameters. I think a traveller’s tryst should be something you can do without getting on a plane or driving more than a couple of hours from home. And I don’t think it always needs to be a dedicated excursion. It could just be a detour or a pause in your daily routine.

Julia Cameron says that no one else is allowed to come on an artist date – it has to be a solo activity. I’m not going to impose this rule on the traveller’s tryst, although it would probably be good to do it alone at least some of the time.

As for how often to go, I plan to do a traveller’s tryst roughly once a week, and I want to try to keep that up for a year. Let’s see!

Because I work freelance, I have more spare time and flexibility in my week than most people have. I get it. So I’m going to try to make sure that many of my trysts are fitted around normal working hours. The traveller’s tryst shouldn’t just be a special privilege for people who don’t have day jobs.

My home town

I live in Sydney, Australia, so my traveller’s trysts will take place in and around this fabulous city that I’m lucky enough to call home. Every time I post about a traveller’s tryst, I’ll include practical information, so if you live in Sydney or are planning a trip here, you’ll know how to get to the same places. There’ll also be a discussion question at the end of each post – I’d love to hear if you have suggestions for enhancing the experience, or have done something similar where you live.

What’s it all about?

This project comes from a conviction that our travelling selves are in many ways our best selves – us at our most curious, open, risk-tolerant, uncluttered and playful. Why should our best selves be reserved for the relatively small amount of time we spend away from home? I want to see what happens when the travelling mind gets some exercise every week. Do you want to read along and try it too?